A Respite
by Ahoytheship
Summary: All the gang, but a one shot of Glitch and Raw friendship. Inspired by the mirror scene, how Glitch must have felt after it all...


_No, no please, don't do it, it won't work…_

_Show some respect!_

_Please don't, no…_

_I think I invented it…_

_I won't give it to you, please stop…_

_No…_

_A sun-seeder…I don't remember what it does…_

_No…_

_No!_

The atmosphere in the small cabin was hushed yet busy, worries left unsaid, heavy in the air as the motley band prepared for the dangerous gorge crossing. Glitch sat off in a corner, rubbing his head absently in a rare moment of quiet. He glanced up at a harsh whisper, catching the eye of Cain as the Tin Man argued with Ralph and the Tutor, watched as the man frowned and looked away quickly, hands on his hips. DG sat in another corner, fiddling with her hair and speaking softly with Ralph's wife. They held hands, DG gathering strength from the woman who so closely resembled the mother who raised her.

"Not a mother. A robot. Nurture unit," Glitch whispered to himself. He cocked his head, waiting for the rattling of his synapses to stop, praying that he was remembering and not conjuring stories in his mind. Calm finally settled inside his head, and he knew he had remembered that one fact, at least. He sighed, and closed his eyes

_No…don't…please!_

only to snap them back open immediately, foggy visions hovering at the edge of his grasp like sand through his fingers. He did know one thing, at least: whatever it was that had been pulled from inside his mind, it terrified him to no end.

Glitch looked up again toward Cain. "They're lying," Glitch said again softly to himself, "my machine. It is really bad; everything is my fault!" An involuntary hitch gripped his throat, and what was left of his mind flitted again, stirred by the primal fear and remorse in his heart. Tears sprung into his eyes and he gasped at the shock of them.

Glitch hardly noticed a gentle hand come to rest on his shoulder, nor the soft noise of Raw settling into a chair beside him. The kind beast exhaled, brow furrowed and greatly unnerved by the frantic whirring of the man's thoughts. He rested his gaze on Glitch's face, watching as his lips moved silently, pleading to an invisible fright. Raw tightened his grip on Glitch's shoulder, and the stricken man spun immediately, a hand raising as if to ward off an attack. Raw grabbed Glitch's fist with his free hand.

"No fear, Glitch. Raw not hurt you." Glitch's dark eyes settled on Raw's face, breaths slowing, his frantic fidgeting easing down. The man looked into the gaze of the seer, then cast his glance down to their conjoined grasp. Glitch slowly breathed out and released Raw's hand.

"It's all, muddled, Raw," he said softly, eyes still cast downwards, "faces and…and pain." He grimaced. "I know it was bad, but I don't know what, or how, it was bad. It only takes half a brain to know that, that whatever my part was in all of this…it came to no good." Glitch continued staring into his lap, twisting at his ratty overcoat. "A scientific sacrifice, I suppose. But all…all I have to offer is science. And it only leads to…darkness."

Glitch looked up across the room to where DG sat, and bit his lip as a tear wound slowly down his cheek. "I can't give her what she needs to save us all."

Glitch slowly became aware of a calming coming over him, gently. Tendrils of a cool presence flickered in Glitch's mind, seemingly caressing his private hurt from the inside out. Glitch turned gradually back towards the beast, bewildered, his fear gently ebbing as if washed away by a tide. Raw's eyes were clear, but Glitch could see in their depths offers of support, and…gratitude? Glitch turned his head to one side, questioning.

"Raw see what you see. Raw filled with hurt of what Glitch sees. But Raw can help," The calming force of Raw's presence continued to flow down his arm and into Glitch, still gripped at the shoulder by the gentle beast. Glitch breathed deeply, daring to close his eyes. He was met only with hazy images of what he had created, of what he had been through. They seemed surrounded by a bubble of soft light, protecting him from the strength of their hurts.

Glitch opened his eyes and looked at Raw. He smiled lightly. "Thank you, friend."

Raw grinned back. "Glitch have much importance yet to come. Glitch have no time to think so much." And he stood up, and walked over to sit with DG and her friend.

Glitch laughed, in spite of himself. Softly, he chuckled, "think too much? One day I'll get my brain back, and then you'll all really see me thinking too much." He clasped his hands together, rubbing the worn fabric of his sleeves. Gazing out over the room once more, he saw that DG was smiling, laying a hand on Raw's arm. Cain and the Tutor weren't arguing, but simply preparing for the journey. He caught Cain's glance again, and instead of pity in the stoic man's gaze he saw only concern, and admiration. Cain nodded in acknowledgment, Glitch tilting his head in return.

Glitch smiled to himself. The fear was set aside, and only thoughts of the journey and of his companions filled his mind. "And well as it should be," he whispered to himself, proudly, "for I may not have a brain, but even I know what friends are."


End file.
